Of Fanboys and Babies
by NattiKay
Summary: Dr. Thibault knows a secret about the Agrestes. He'll never tell anyone–he knows how important it is–but being aware of it, he can't help but pay special attention to these particular patients. Sequel to The Accidental Doc-tective.


Dr. Franc Thibault walked briskly through the Labor & Delivery ward. Though he was one of the hospital's ultrasound technicians, he didn't often work in this part of the building—not unless there was an emergency. There was no such emergency today, so he figured he should probably be elsewhere—but he _had_ to come here. He'd noticed on the hospital records that Adrien and Marinette Agreste had checked in the previous day to deliver their baby boy, and Dr. Thibault was determined to see them.

See, Dr. Thibault knew a secret about the Agrestes. He'd known it ever since he'd accidentally overheard them using very unique nicknames some four or five months ago when they had an appointment with him.

Marinette and Adrien were Ladybug and Chat Noir, the famed heroes of Paris.

Dr. Thibault never revealed the Agrestes' secret, not once since that day, not even to his wife. Being a superhero enthusiast in his spare time, he knew all too well the importance of a hero's secret identity—even with Hawkmoth no logner in the picture, it would be easiest for them to keep such information private. But all the self-control in the world couldn't stop him from feeling a little thrill of excitement whenever he thought about the couple, and the special knowledge he'd discovered about their civilian lives that, as far as he was aware, no one else knew. He'd found it difficult not to pay particular attention to their subsequent appointments over the past few months, feeling oddly giddy to know that his heroes' son was coming on well.

Now that the boy had been born (or, at least, the doctor _hoped_ he'd been born by now), he had to see him. He just _had_ to. And so he continued his walk, discreetly peeking into each room as he passed, hoping to catch a glimpse of the couple who'd inadvertently become his favorite patients.

 _Just act natural, Franc,_ he thought to himself as he slipped by room after room. _If you look like you know what you're doing, no one will question it._

At last, he spotted them. Marinette— _Ladybug!_ —appeared to have fallen asleep, her body angled towards her husband; tangled inky hair, still slightly damp from residual sweat, spilled out behind her. Right next to her, seated in a soft armchair, Adrien ( _Chat! Chat Noir!_ ) was still awake, and in his arms lay a tiny bundle. Despite the bags under his half-lidded eyes, the man looked utterly euphoric, all the pride and happiness of a new father shining behind his glasses and on his tired smile.

Stifling a squawk of glee, Dr. Thibault took just a moment to compose himself before stepping into the room. Noticing the movement, Adrien glanced up, smiling as he caught sight of the doctor.

"Dr. Thibault," he greeted with a nod. "Good to see you."

"And you," Dr. Thibault responded genuinely as Marinette, roused by the sound of voices, stirred on the bed, bright blue eyes blinking open.

"Oh, no, my lady," Adrien assured, reaching over to put a gentle hand on his wife's shoulder. "You don't need to get up. Dr. Thibault just came in to say hello. You should rest."

"It's alright," Marinette yawned, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "I wasn't completely asleep yet."

 _Always looking out for each other,_ Dr. Thibault thought warmly, _both_ _in and out of suit_.

'My lady' was more generic a nickname than the 'bugaboo' Dr. Thibault had heard that first day, the day he discovered their secret. Any other bystander probably wouldn't have given it a second thought. But he knew better.

"So what brings you here, Dr. Thibault? Come to check up on Hugo?" Marinette asked, breaking the doctor out of his thoughts. Dr. Thibault chuckled amicably.

"Oh, no, I'm not trained for that, I'm afraid," he admitted. "I just happened to be passing by and saw you from out in the hall, so I thought I'd stop in and say hello." _True enough_. His eyes flicked back to the little bundle in his father's arms. "Hugo, did you call him?"

"Hugo Thomas Agreste," said Adrien proudly, shifting the little bundle so that more of his face was visible. "Hugo's a name we've had picked for a while, and then Thomas after Marinette's father."

"A good choice," Dr. Thibault conceded. He'd never met Marinette's father, but if he raised Ladybug, he must be a pretty solid guy, he figured.

Adrien's smile broadened.

"Would you like to hold him?"

Dr. Thibault blinked in surprise, followed shortly by a pleased grin, holding his arms out gently.

"Uh, y-yeah, of course," he stammered as Adrien carefully passed his son over. Dr. Thibault took a moment to study the boy. He was fast asleep, so the doctor could not see his eye color, but his tiny head was covered in a fine layer of fluff as black as his mother's. While he still had the distinctive scrunched appearance of a newborn, his face was relaxed, making the little guy much easier on the eyes than he would've been had he still been screaming as babies generally do at birth.

"What a handsome young lad," he said softly, half to the couple and half to himself. "I'm sure he'll grow to be a brave and strong boy." _Just like his parents_.

"Thank you," replied Marinette, her tired voice quiet but full of motherly affection. Dr. Thibault smiled.

"Well," he said, handing the baby back to his proud parents, "I'd best be off. We doctors sure are busy." He glanced between the couple once more. "Congratulations," he concluded.

"Thanks," the couple responded.

"It was nice seeing you, Dr. Thibault," Marinette added.

With a satisfied nod, Dr. Thibault smiled, waving a brief goodbye to his former patients before exiting the room to get back to his own ward.

He knew he wouldn't be seeing the Agrestes as often now that the baby was born. While they would likely continue making frequent visits for little Hugo's earliest check-ups for the next few months, it would be the pediatricians they'd be consulting now, not an ultrasound technician like himself. But he might still get a glimpse of them from time to time. For him, it was enough just knowing their secret, that the city's heroes had a chance to by happy together with their new child. The idea made him smile.

 _Besides,_ he mused as he walked contentedly down the hall, _perhaps one day, a few years down the road, Hugo will get a little brother or sister…_


End file.
